Alphonso Thomas, the journeyman fast medium bowler from Cape Town, has had a day out for Somerset today in its Division One County Championship game against Sussex at Taunton taking 4 wickets in 4 balls. A link to the score card is here: http://www.espncricinfo.com/county-cricket-2014/engine/match/692783.html
The mythical “double hatrick” is a rare beast having only been achieved 40 times in first class cricket. Here is a list of the players who have preceded Thomas in achieving this feat:
| J Wells | Kent v Sussex | Brighton | 1862 |
| G Ulyett | Lord Harris’ XI v New South Wales | Sydney | 1878-79 |
| G Nash | Lancashire v Somerset | Manchester | 1882 |
| JB Hide | Sussex v MCC | Lord’s | 1890 |
| FJ Shacklock | Nottinghamshire v Somerset | Nottingham | 1893 |
| AD Downes | Otago v Auckland | Dunedin | 1893-94 |
| F Martin | MCC v Derbyshire | Lord’s | 1895 |
| AW Mold | Lancashire v Nottinghamshire | Nottingham | 1895 |
| W Brearley | Lancashire v Somerset | Manchester | 1905 |
| S Haigh | MCC v Army XI | Pretoria | 1905-06 |
| AE Trott* | Middlesex v Somerset | Lord’s | 1907 |
| FA Tarrant | Middlesex v Gloucestershire | Bristol | 1907 |
| A Drake | Yorkshire v Derbyshire | Chesterfield | 1914 |
| SG Smith | Northamptonshire v Warwickshire | Birmingham | 1914 |
| HA Peach | Surrey v Sussex | The Oval | 1924 |
| AF Borland | Natal v Griqualand West | Kimberley | 1926-27 |
| JEH Hooker | New South Wales v Victoria | Sydney | 1928-29 |
| RK Tyldesley | Lancashire v Derbyshire | Derby | 1929 |
| RJ Crisp | Western Province v Griqualand West | Johannesburg | 1931-32 |
| RJ Crisp | Western Province v Natal | Durban | 1933-34 |
| AR Gover | Surrey v Worcestershire | Worcester | 1935 |
| WH Copson | Derbyshire v Warwickshire | Derby | 1937 |
| WA Henderson | NE Transvaal v Orange Free State | Bloemfontein | 1937-38 |
| F Ridgway | Kent v Derbyshire | Folkestone | 1951 |
| AK Walker * | Nottinghamshire v Leicestershire | Leicester | 1956 |
| SN Mohol | President’s XI v Combined XI | Pune | 1965-66 |
| D Robins | South Australia v New South Wales | Adelaide | 1965-66 |
| PI Pocock * | Surrey v Sussex | Eastbourne | 1972 |
| SS Sain | Delhi v Himachal Pradesh | New Delhi | 1988-89 |
| D Dais | W Province (Suburbs) v Central Province | Colombo | 1990-91 |
| Ali Gauhar | Karachi Blues v United Bank | Peshawar | 1994-95 |
| KD James* | Hampshire v Indians | Southampton | 1996 |
| GP Butcher | Surrey v Derbyshire | The Oval | 2000 |
| Fazl-e-Akbar | PIA v Habib Bank | Lahore | 2001-02 |
| CM Willoughby | Cape Cobras v Dolphins | Durban | 2005-06 |
| Tabish Khan | Karachi Whites v Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited | Karachi (UBL) | 2009-10 |
| N Wagner | Otago v Wellington | Queenstown | 2010-11 |
This is, frankly, an amazing feat and one, it must be noted, that has never been achieved in the test match arena.
Well played Alphonso!
Shumpty Speaks 